Winter Meeting

Our next in person meeting opportunity will be January 28-29, 2025 at the Sunseeker Resort in Port Charlotte. The schedule can be found here. Registration can be found here for the Judicial Liaison Dinner, Section Luncheon as well as the joint reception with RPPTL. These events will be open to RPPTL members after 12/8 and space is limited, so register soon!

Please click here to make your hotel reservations. Please note there is NO hotel block but should be sufficient rooms available. However the less expensive rooms are selling out so book soon.

Pro Bono Committee

The Pro Bono Committee is now accepting nominations for the Business Law Section’s annual Pro Bono Award, and we need your help identifying outstanding members who go above and beyond in service to our communities.

This award recognizes a Section member who has demonstrated exceptional dedication to pro bono work, whether through direct representation, impactful volunteer initiatives, mentorship, or leadership in advancing access to justice.

If you know someone whose pro bono efforts deserve to be celebrated, please take a moment to submit a nomination.

Business Litigation Committee

The Business Litigation Committee recently presented the 2025 Legislative Update. If you missed the live program, you can watch it now on demand here. The full agenda can be found here.

Computer Law & Technology Committee

On November 12, 2025, the Computer Law and Technology Committee (CLTC) welcomed practitioners to a CLE program presented by former CLTC Chair Michael Bittner of MB Legal, PLLC, and Carlos Rodriguez, CEO and vCISO of CA2Security, titled “Cybersecurity Essentials for Florida Attorneys: Compliance and Protection.” The program underscored that cybersecurity is not merely a technical concern but an ethical obligation, a fiduciary responsibility, and a fundamental component of modern business operations. Bittner and Rodriguez provided attendees with a series of practical recommendations, including adopting multi-factor authentication and device encryption as baseline requirements; implementing regular system patching; ensuring annual security training for both staff and attorneys; conducting robust vendor due diligence supported by appropriate contractual security provisions; and developing, documenting, and routinely practicing a comprehensive Cyber Resiliency Response Plan encompassing incident response, disaster recovery, and business continuity.

For practitioners who were not able to attend the live webinar, the 24/7 on-demand seminar is available for purchase on the Florida Bar website: Cybersecurity Essentials for Florida Attorneys: Compliance and Protection

M&A Due Diligence: Checklists, Timeline Best Practice

Gain practical, step-by-step guidance on managing the due diligence process in mergers and acquisitions. This program covers building effective checklists, setting and meeting timelines, identifying red flags, and coordinating across legal, financial, and operational teams to keep deals efficient and risk-aware.

Registration Link

Ethical and Cultural Considerations in Pro Bono Representation of Small Business Clients

• Date: 12 January 2026
• Time: 12:00 PM - 01:15 PM
• Location: Zoom
• CLE Approved:
• General: 1.0 hours
• Ethics: 1.0 hours
• Certification Program:
• Business Litigation: 1.0 hours
• Pro Bono CLE Registration Link.

BLS Blog: Wayback Machine Evidence

By William Slicker

In 1995, Brewster Kahle and Bruce Gilliat began archiving web pages and named their site the Internet Archive. In 2001, they rebranded as the Wayback Machine. The name Wayback Machine is a take off from the Wayback Machine used by Mister Peabody and Sherman to travel back in time in The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle TV show.

The Wayback Machine allows users to view pages and sites as they existed on a specific date in the past that the website was archived. This can be valuable evidence of what a now scrubbed site once displayed.

Just like other documentary evidence, content from the Wayback Machine must be authenticated in order to be introduced into evidence.

Read on

From the Florida Bar Journal: Florida’s Securities Guaranty Fund: An Instagram Worthy Model

By Melanie Cherdack and Ryann White

In October 2024, as part of a multi-year collaboration between the Business Law Section of The Florida Bar and the Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) to modernize the Florida Securities and Investor Protection Act (FSIPA), the Florida Legislature passed sweeping amendments to its securities fraud restitution statute, the Securities Guaranty Fund (fund). The amendments broadened the eligibility criteria for victims of Florida securities fraud violations who hold uncollected civil judgments or restitution awards. The definition of final judgment was expanded to include court confirmed arbitration awards, making Florida the first state to include such awards in a civil securities restitution fund. The amendments also provide for receivers to recover on behalf of securities fraud victims. The new legislation increased the amounts recoverable by victims, enhanced the recovery allowable for any “specified adult,” streamlined the claims process, and significantly shortened the approval process. Florida’s new eligibility provisions make this the broadest state restitution fund in the country. The fund can serve as a model for other states to provide a source of recovery for securities fraud victims who hold uncollectable judgments, confirmed arbitration awards, or restitution orders.

Read on

Do you have an idea for an article? Submit Business Law Section blog articles here. Submit Florida Bar Journal articles here.

Ms. Florin served as Chair of the Business Law Section in 2020-2021

Leyza Florin is a Shareholder at Sequor Law, where she focuses her practice on asset recovery, financial fraud, and cross-border insolvency representing foreign and domestic bankruptcy trustees, and creditors in high-stakes, international and business litigation. Ranked Band 1 by Chambers USA for Bankruptcy Litigation and a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy, Leyza is recognized for her leadership in the field having served as past chair of the Florida Bar Business Law Section (2020-21) and International Women’s Insolvency & Restructuring Confederation (IWIRC) (2021) and past-president of the Bankruptcy Bar of the Southern District of Florida (2006-07). She presently chairs the International Nominating Committee of the American College of Bankruptcy.

Learn more about her here.

Judges fill an integral role on our Executive Council. Meet one of them, Judge Delano.

What have you gained from your involvement with the Section?

Since I first joined the Business Law Section and the UCC-Bankruptcy Committee in 2004, I have gained an appreciation for the Section’s work, particularly its legislative work. Before joining the Section, I (ignorantly) had no idea that Section members draft most of the business-related legislation proposed in the Florida Legislature. I have benefited, both as an attorney and as a bankruptcy judge, from my participation in the Bankruptcy-UCC and Judicial Liaison Committees. 

Learn more about her here.

CLE on Demand

Need CLE? Miss a program? Many of our past programs are available on demand.

Planning a CLE

Do you have an idea for a great CLE? Learn more here.

Business Litigation and Real Property Case Law Updates

September 2025

Florida isn’t just a state—it’s a global economic powerhouse. If it were an independent nation, Florida would rank among the top 15 largest economies in the world, boasting a GDP that rivals many major countries. The Business Law Section of The Florida Bar plays a critical role in shaping the commercial legal landscape of this economic titan. Our members are not only top-tier business lawyers—they’re the very individuals Florida legislators turn to when drafting or revising key commercial statutes. Sponsoring Business Law Section events like the Labor Day Retreat puts your organization directly in front of the thought leaders, power brokers, and policy shapers who influence business law and practice statewide—and often nationally.

This is more than a networking opportunity. It’s your chance to engage with the legal professionals guiding Florida’s economic future. In addition to the Labor Day Retreat, there are plenty of other sponsorship opportunities that provide year-round exposure through our Section’s ongoing programming, communications, and events. If your brand wants to be seen, respected, and remembered by the attorneys who help write the laws that govern business in one of the world’s most dynamic markets, this is where you need to be.

Please reach out to Will Blair and Bob Charbonneau for sponsorship opportunities.